The present invention relates generally to fluid sealing nuts and more particularly to a relatively lightweight fluid sealing nut. The disclosed seal nut is an improvement on the seal nut disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,367,060, which is assigned to the assignee of the instant application.
Titanium seal nuts are used in the aircraft industry to fasten components that are highly loaded and must be fluid tight. Such nuts generally comprise an annular internally threaded nut body having a deformable sealing ring disposed in a counter bore positioned in the load bearing surface of the nut. The sealing ring generally protrudes below the bearing surface of the nut so that when the nut is torqued down against a workpiece, the sealing ring is both axially compressed and deformed radially inwardly against the shank or threads of the bolt, thereby forming a fluid tight seal.
Since thousands of such seal nuts are used on each airframe, weight of the individual nut is of prime concern. Obviously, however, any reduction in weight of the nut must be accomplished without compromising strength or structural integrity of the nut.